


it’s a cold day in heaven, my love

by Shadowcrawler



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fusion, Alternate Universe - Skating, F/F, Gen, Ice Skating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2020-09-28
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:48:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,927
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26705509
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadowcrawler/pseuds/Shadowcrawler
Summary: Jemma Simmons has created an algorithm to help improve professional junior skaters' techniques. The only thing is, she wants to use it for herself too.(an Ice Princess AU)
Relationships: Jemma Simmons/Skye | Daisy Johnson
Comments: 2
Kudos: 27
Collections: Bioquake Week 2020





	it’s a cold day in heaven, my love

**Author's Note:**

> For Bioquake Week day 5, "dancing," because, again, loosely interpreting prompts.
> 
> So...this was supposed to be done earlier than this but I maybe burned myself out a little trying to do most of these at basically the last minute. So there's this one, and one more coming for Bioquake Week hopefully within the next few days, and in the words of my Aunt Lucretia, "it's not late, it's prolonging the holiday!"
> 
> Also this is an AU of a 2005 Disney movie that you probably haven't seen and you don't have to watch to read this, but I'm fond of it, so I recommend it in that '00s goofy Disney movie way. I cut out the shitty mom from the movie because I didn't want to write her, I made the coach character a little more passive-aggressive and less of a cutthroat bitch, and I expanded the romance and the protagonist's friendships a little.

If you had told Jemma Simmons one month ago that she’d be out at the ice rink using her own physics calculations to improve her skating techniques and working at the snack bar to pay for her lessons, she’d have laughed at you. But here she is.

Of course, it’s only been a week or so since her very first beginner’s class, so she doubts that she’s improved _that_ much. Part of her can still feel the curious stares of the rest of the class - literal children, half her height and twice her experience level already. Still, Jiaying seemed pleased with her progress, and she wouldn’t let her come back if that weren’t true, right? Even Kora, when she snuck in at the tail end, looked interested. (She’s known Kora since middle school and that girl’s never so much as looked at her twice, so that’s shocking all by itself.) 

She starts out practicing some of the balance techniques they learned for streamlined skating, and she’s so focused that she doesn’t hear the voice yelling “Hey, off the ice!”

Jemma startles and jumps, which knocks her off-balance, and she’s barely able to right herself by grabbing one of the rails. She turns around and sees a zamboni behind her, driven by an Asian girl with purple-streaked hair. 

The girl looks annoyed. “I need to smooth the ice, can you get off?”

“Sorry!” Jemma yelps as she quickly climbs into the bleachers. “I didn’t mean to get in your way, I was just...practicing.”

“I figured,” the girl shouts over the sound of the zamboni. She sounds less annoyed now, and Jemma watches, fascinated, as she expertly sweeps the zamboni across the rink, leaving gleaming smooth ice behind. 

Once she’s done, the girl steers the zamboni close to the bleachers and smirks at Jemma. “You must really want that A, huh?”

“Oh, it isn’t for an A,” Jemma corrects automatically. “It’s for a physics scholarship.”

“Woah.” The girl raises both eyebrows. “That’s so nerdy. I kinda love it. How’d you end up on ice skating, though? Wouldn’t it be easier to do...I don’t know, cars or something?”

“Maybe,” Jemma says with a self-conscious shrug, “but I like skating. There’s a pond by my house, I used to spend entire winters there. It’s fascinating.”

“Cute.” The girl salutes her and then turns the zamboni toward the exit off the rink. “Well, I gotta park this baby, but you have a good practice, alright? And good luck.”

“Thanks,” Jemma says, feeling her cheeks turn pink. “You have a good...time parking.”

The girl gives her a wink before she drives away.

\---

She convinces Fitz to help her get footage for her project. He’s grumbly about coming out to the rink so early, but he calms down a little once they’ve started. “Alright, now introduce yourself to the camera and just do it like we practiced,” he instructed.

“Hello, I’m Jemma Simmons,” Jemma chirps with her best fake-bright smile. “I’m testing my hypothesis on the application of physics to the required elements of competitive figure skating. Today, I’ll show you how I can use these physics principles to improve specific skating moves. First, I’ll show you what a spin looks like when I have my arms loose or out.” She does, and she can feel how bad it looks. Fitz lets out a little snort of amusement. “And now,” she says, once that’s done, I’ll increase the centripetal force by tucking in my arms like so, which will increase my moment of inertia so I will spin faster and cleaner.” This time, she can feel the difference. Fitz, from behind the camera, gives her a thumbs-up.

“Now, here’s what is known as a double axel, where I will jump up in the air and do two and a half spins before landing again. This jump requires me to use my toe pick to get the proper amount of height. Observe what it looks like without this.” Jemma gets herself ready, then does a clumsy approximation of the jump where she lands hard on her foot before even completing the second spin.

Fitz winces. “Yeah, that was rubbish, alright.”

“Shush.” Jemma rolls her eyes. “And now, I will apply force to the toe pick to increase the height of my jump, which will help me to complete the spins.” She gets up to speed, then pushes off and flies into the air. 

And, for just a second, the world slows down and everything is perfect. 

She feels the air woosh around her, feels absolutely perfect and weightless as she sends her body spinning, and then feels herself touch back down again elegantly, arms out to help slow her landing. 

She beams at the camera, and sees that Fitz is straight up gawking at her. 

“Jemma,” he says, “that’s bloody _amazing._ I didn’t know you could do that!”

“I’ve been practicing,” she says with a little shrug. She spots movement out of the corner of her eye and turns her head to see Kora on the bleachers, watching. She waves, because it’s important to be friendly, and Kora, to her shock, waves back and gives her a quick, but unmistakable, thumbs up.

\---

After her very first recital, which is honestly so fun that she almost forgets she’s surrounded by literal children, all the girls gather in the locker room to read their scores. Jemma’s not really expecting much because, well, she’s not _really_ here for the competitions after all. 

“Novice pass, yes!” says six-year-old Lily, pumping her fist. “How’d you do, Jemma?”

Jemma shrugs. “Fine, I suppose.” She opens the envelope and unfolds the paper. “Junior pass?”

All the little girls gasp and gather around to see the paper. “That means you skipped two levels!” one of them informs her, eyes wide. 

“Jiaying, why didn’t I skip two levels?” Lily pouts.

“Because you’re six,” Jiaying says, kindly but firmly, patting the little girl on the head. 

Lily seems to accept this answer and adds to Jemma, “Y’know, that means you’re on the same level as Kora and Bobbi and Elena.”

Jemma blinks and turns to Jiaying. “Is that true, Jiaying? Am I on their level?”

Jiaying’s face, as usual, is carefully unreadable, but she nods. “Yes, you are.”

Jemma opens her mouth to ask another question, but just then Jiaying looks over at Kora, who, looking somewhat less than thrilled, nods and says, “Hey, kids, let’s go line up to get changed, alright? Your parents are waiting for you.” And with that, the entire pack of little girls follows her, chattering excitedly about their results. 

“Jiaying,” Jemma asks, not sure how to ask the question buzzing around in her head, “what if I...what if I wanted to compete?”

“I’m not sure that’s possible,” Jiaying says slowly.

“Why not?”

“Because you need money.” Jiaying doesn’t sound rude or harsh, just blunt as usual. “You have raw talent. It’s very impressive, especially considering your lack of experience, but it won’t be enough, I’m afraid. You’ll need a coach, a choreographer, private ice time, custom boots with blades that need to be sharpened every six weeks. Bobbi’s parents took out a second mortgage so she can do this, and Elena relies almost entirely on corporate sponsorships. You have to want it, more than anything else you’ve ever wanted. You can’t just _decide_ to do it. I’m sorry.” And with that, Jiaying turns to go help Kora herd the other girls in and out of the changing stalls. 

Jemma sits down on the bench to wait until all the others are gone, her mind buzzing.

\---

Two days later, her senior year starts. By coincidence, she ends up in the same homeroom as Kora and Bobbi. “Hey there,” Bobbi says, sliding into the chair on her left (Kora plops down on Bobbi’s other side). “I heard somebody skipped two levels this weekend.”

Jemma flushes. “Y-yes, I did.”

“Damn.” Kora whistles. “I knew you were good, but that’s nuts.”

“Did you really land a double axel?” Bobbi asks, eyes wide. 

“I suppose so,” Jemma says sheepishly. “It was just when I was filming some clips for my physics project.”

Kora snorts loudly. “Cut the crap, Jemma, I saw you. You’re damn good. No wonder my mom let you do the recital.”

“So, are you gonna join the No Carbs Clique?” Bobbi asks, a little sarcastic. “We offer no free time for anything except skating-related activities, bitch sessions over lunch, and a diet that would make a rabbit cry.”

“Oh my goodness,” says Jemma, eyes wide. “I mean, I’d like to be friends, but that’s very…”

“Insane?” Kora says. “Yeah, it is. I totally don’t blame my sister for noping out of skating lessons.”

“Your sister? I didn’t know you had a sister.”

“Yeah, she’s a junior. Daisy? She drives the zamboni at the rink and does some other maintenance stuff, because god forbid any of our family not be tied to this stupid sport somehow.” 

Jemma’s so shocked to realize that the zamboni girl is Daisy, she almost misses the second half of Kora’s sentence. “But don’t you _like_ it?” she asks.

Kora shrugs. “It doesn’t matter if I like it. It’s just kind of what I do. My mom was a failed champion and she thinks she can relive her past through me.”

“Oh.” Jemma frowns. “I’m sorry.”

Kora shrugs again. 

She and Fitz usually sneak off to eat in the library, but today Kora comes up to her as they’re heading away from the cafeteria. “You wanna eat with us?” she asks. “He can come too, we don’t care.”

Jemma swallows. “Um…” She glances at Fitz uncertainly.

Fitz shrugs. “Okay, but don’t expect me to know a damn thing about skating.”

They end up crammed into one end of a table with Bobbi, Kora, and Elena, the latter of whom Jemma has seen at the rink but not really talked to. “Hi,” Elena says as they sit down. “I hear you’re the new competition I have to look out for.” She’s smirking, but it seems like maybe it’s only kind of a joke. 

“Oh, don’t worry, I don’t really have the money,” Jemma protests awkwardly. 

“Damn shame,” Bobbi says. “It’d be a pretty cool addition to your project.”

Something starts to hum at the back of Jemma’s brain. It’s not a full thought yet, so she leaves it alone while the others start bitching about the end-of-semester history project they’ve all been assigned (it’s a legendary grade-maker or -killer). Then, as the conversation is just switching to music choices for regionals, Jemma suddenly says, “What if I used my report to help the rest of you?”

“What?” Elena asks. “What do you mean, like coaching us?”

“Yes. Not that you aren’t all brilliant skaters,” she adds quickly, “but I can observe you and point out places where we can apply the physics principles I’m citing in my report.”

Kora looks impressed. “Seriously? I could get my mom off my ass about not being able to land my double axel.”

Elena is nodding. “My parents would definitely pay you for that.”

“How do I know you won’t steal my techniques?” Bobbi’s smirking, but there’s a hint of truth behind her words.

“You don’t,” Jemma says honestly. “But the three of you have very different styles, and there’s no way I could copy any significant part of it without it being awkward and obvious. Besides,” she adds, grinning at Bobbi, “you’re so tall, I don’t think I could skate exactly like you even if I wanted to. Your velocity and drag resistance is completely different.”

“Okay, nerd,” Bobbi says, but she bumps her shoulder against Jemma’s.

\---

So, over the next few months, Jemma spends every minute she can at the rink. If she’s not practicing herself, she’s working with one of the others. She and Fitz coded a program to generate the algorithms and models needed for perfect moves, and it’s proving invaluable. “You could probably sell this,” Kora points out, which just makes Jemma self-conscious. 

And she sees Daisy more too. Daisy comes to watch her practice, and even tries to watch her and Kora practice, until Kora spots her and shouts, “D, if you don’t get out of here I’m flushing your phone!” Apparently this is a oft-used threat, because all Daisy does is roll her eyes and put her feet on the chair next to her, but she doesn’t come to Kora’s session the next day. 

She tries to be subtle about her disappointment at the empty bleachers, but Kora notices. “You really like my sister, huh?” she asks, eyes gleaming with mischief. 

“What? No!” Jemma protests. “It’s just nice to see a friendly face, that’s all.”

“Sure.” Kora skates off. “Let’s try a luxe today, alright? My landings are still shit.”

When it’s just her and Daisy, she doesn’t try to talk to Jemma too much while she’s practicing. But sometimes she’ll show up and Daisy will already be there, and they’ll talk for a bit before she starts. Daisy’s an amateur hacker, a fact which causes her mother no end of grief, apparently. “She really wishes I was into all this,” Daisy says, waving her hand at the rink. “And I like watching it, but I’m useless on skates and we both know it. With coding and hacking and stuff, it’s like I don’t even have to try. Just comes naturally to me.”

“That’s how I feel about skating,” Jemma says, a bit shy. “And physics too. Apparently when I was quite small my older sister would come home from college and I’d beg her to read to me, but she always needed to study, so she read me her physics textbooks. I was probably the only kindergartener who understood the principle of relativity.”

“Well, that’s adorable.” Daisy smiles at her, and Jemma’s heart leaps like she’s in the middle of a jump. “Your algorithm is kickass, by the way. You do that all by yourself?”

“Oh, no, Fitz helped. He’s better with tech stuff than me.”

“Is Fitz that skinny guy that comes to help you film sometimes?” Daisy sounds like she’s trying too hard to sound casual. “Boyfriend?”

“What? Oh, goodness no, he’s my best friend. We tried to date once but it was horrifically awkward, so we went back to being best friends. And then it turned out we’re both gay, so I suppose that worked out!” Jemma lets out a horrid little nervous laugh before realizing that that might not have been the right thing to say.

But Daisy looks pleased. “Cool. Uh, in that case-”

But before she can finish, Jiaying swans into the rink and says, “Jemma, can I talk to you please? And Daisy, aren’t you supposed to be oiling the locker doors?”

Daisy sighs dramatically and stands up. “Catch you later,” she says to Jemma with a little wave. 

Jemma shoves down her disappointment. “What is it, Jiaying?”

“Well, with regionals coming up, I was wondering what you had in mind for a costume.”

Jemma sighs. “I’m not sure, honestly. I might try and find something to modify at the thrift store?”

“You can’t do that,” Jiaying says with a firm shake of her head. “Come meet me in my office when you’re done here.”

Jemma spends the practice session wondering what Jiaying could possibly have to say to her. Finally, she calls it a day and heads for Jiaying’s office. “You wanted to see me?”

Jiaying is at her desk, typing, and glances up when Jemma comes in. “Yes,” she says, standing up. She’s holding something in her hands, but Jemma can’t see what it is. “You wear a size four dress, right?”

“Er, yes?” 

Jiaying holds up a red sequined costume with a colorful pattern of fabric flowers cascading down its front. “Try this on.”

Jemma’s mouth falls open. “I - what?”

“It’s one of my old costumes. I think it’ll fit you, but if not we can figure something out. Go on.” Jiaying gestures toward the door. 

So Jemma, startled, does as she says. 

\---

On the drive up to regionals, Jemma ends up squished in the very back of Jiaying’s van between Daisy and some of the equipment boxes. “Sorry,” Daisy says to her, barely audible over the classical music Jiaying insisted on blasting. “You have to at least place in a competition before Mom lets you sit with actual humans, I think.”

“Are you saying you’re _not_ a human?” Jemma teases.

“Yep. I’m actually a werewolf.” Daisy winks. “Don’t tell anyone, okay?”

Jemma giggles. “However did that happen?”

Daisy launches into a ridiculous story that gets more and more complicated as she talks, and when they pull into the parking garage with the story still unfinished, she winks at Jemma and says, “Guess I’ll tell you about my unpaid gambling debts later.” Jemma’s heart is racing, and it’s only partially because of nerves.

At first, it seems totally fine, and she starts to get ready like it’s just another recital. She can ignore her nerves, like an itchy mosquito bite. But every time she hears a name that isn’t hers announced, she can feel her anxiety increasing, like dozens of bites all over her body, like maybe she’s not even supposed to be here at all and she shouldn’t go out there, she’ll only make a fool out of herself and-

The locker room door opens again and Kora comes in. “Hey,” she says, and then stops. “You okay?”

Jemma grits her teeth. “I’m fine, thanks very much, just having a small anxiety attack, it’s nothing, it’ll be alright.”

“Here.” Kora digs into her cleavage and hands her two sticks of gum. “Chew on this, it helps.” 

Jemma blinks and stares at her, not sure if Kora’s gone mad. “What?”

“It’s something for you to focus on,” Kora says. “And it isn’t food, so Mom can’t get mad. Anyway, this is just the short, it only counts for a third of the score. The long’s the one you have to worry about. So be sure and save the second stick for that one, got it?”

“Got it.” 

The second she gets out on the ice, she doesn’t think of anything but her next moves. It’s not until she hears the loud applause at the end of her routine that she’s drawn abruptly back into the real world, and almost collides with the wall on her way off the rink. 

She’s a bundle of nerves until the results get posted. All four of them join the crowd around the board until, finally, they can see the rankings. Jemma steps forward and scans the list for her name, heart in her throat, until she sees herself listed at number five - just below the qualifiers. 

“Fifth!” Bobbi says, turning to grin at her. “That’s awesome!” She and Elena are third and second, respectively, so they’re both beaming. 

“But fifth doesn’t go to sectionals,” Jemma says, trying not to sound too disappointed. After all, does it matter if she doesn’t move up in the competition? This is plenty of evidence that her program works. 

“Hey.” Kora claps a hand on her shoulder, a little roughly, but it’s clearly a fond gesture. “If you skate a kickass program tonight like you did with the short, you might knock me out of fourth.”

Jemma’s eyes widen. “Really?” 

Kora nods. Jemma could swear she looks almost...hopeful?

“Not bad, all of you,” Jiaying says, when she sees the results, “but don’t go getting cocky.” She looks sternly over at Kora. “You need to watch your landings. You almost faceplanted out there.”

“I know, Mom,” Kora says through gritted teeth. Before Jemma can say anything to her, she gets up and storms off.

The next few hours are some of the most awkward of Jemma’s life. Jiaying doesn’t want any of them getting too far out of sight, so they end up all milling around in the skaters-only areas occasionally making uncomfortable small talk. Jemma’s never been more relieved than when it’s time for them to start getting ready for the long program.

She’s in the locker room putting on her skates back on when Jiaying comes in. “You’ve done an extraordinary thing,” she says, sitting down on the bench next to Jemma. “Competing in regionals just months after you started training professionally and coming in fifth after your first short program - that’s quite a story.”

Embarrassed, Jemma ducks her head. “I don’t want to come off as arrogant,” she protests. “I just really love this.”

“I know. That’s obvious from the way you skate.” Jiaying offers her a small smile. “Remember, just being here is an accomplishment, no matter what happens out there.”

“Yes,” agrees Jemma. 

“It’ll certainly be interesting,” Jiaying adds more quietly, as if she’s not really talking to herself, “to see if raw talent can beat years of quality training.” 

Jemma frowns. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing,” Jiaying says with an odd smile. “Your gumption is really quite impressive. If only it were enough.” Then she shrugs and stands up, giving Jemma a farewell nod and a “See you afterward” before leaving.

Her words, clearly chosen with precision, burrow their way into Jemma’s brain despite her best efforts. Maybe fifth _is_ as far as she’ll get. Maybe she’s only destined to be a curiosity, the skater who came out of nowhere and gave a surprisingly decent performance in this one competition, but then subsequently flamed out and retreated in shame. Maybe she’d better drop out now and save herself the embarrassment. 

Before she can let that thought go any further, she pulls out the second stick of gum and chomps on it like her life depends on it.

She’s still jittery when she starts her program, but concentrating on the next moves and hitting all the correct beats of the routine she choreographed (with Fitz’s help, since she didn’t really have anyone else to ask) helps a bit. She can feel herself making tiny mistakes that are probably affecting her score, but she does her best to just focus on what’s ahead.

They put a triple Lutz at the peak of the program, and she feels gloriously weightless as she spins - until she lands, at which point she can feel her ankle give way beneath her and her body kind of flops down toward the ice. She’s barely able to use the momentum to scramble to her feet and keep going, face burning.

The audience gasps and one of the announcers says, “Oof, pity that triple Lutz had such a clumsy landing, Ms. Simmons has excellent form besides that. That’ll definitely cost her some points, but will it keep her out of the top four? Let’s hope she can finish the program.”

Jemma does, though she has to exert every bit of effort to keep herself from bursting into tears. She’s not proud that she immediately makes a beeline for the bathroom, but luckily no one else comes in until she’s mostly composed herself. 

“Jemma?” Daisy’s voice asks, tapping on the closed door. “Hey, you can stay in there if you want, but I wanted to say, you had a damn good program apart from that one moment.”

Jemma sniffles. “You’re not supposed to be in here,” she points out, because it’s all she can think to do. “Skaters only, I thought.”

Daisy chuckles. “I have my ways. Anyway, you doing okay? It was just bad luck, and who knows, maybe one of the others will fall on their ass and you’ll get bumped up.”

At that, Jemma chokes out a laugh. “Don’t let your sister hear you say that.”

“Psh, please. She doesn’t want to do regionals. You’re the first shot she’s had at getting out of all this.” Daisy’s quiet a minute, and then says, “Don’t say anything to our mom, okay? She’d blow a gasket if she knew how sick Kora is of all this.”

“I won’t,” Jemma promises. “But...why does she do it?”

“I mean, have you met Mom?” Daisy snarks. “She’s still mad she didn’t make it when she was young enough. Kora is her perfect little skating machine. I think she might literally explode if Kora quit.”

Jemma winces. “Oh dear.” Then she adds, “I think...I think she tried to convince me to drop out earlier. Your mom, I mean. I don’t mean to talk out of turn, but she-”

“Lemme guess, she said some passive-aggressive shit about how you’ve come really far despite having no real training?”

“How do you know that?”

“I know my mom. I think it freaks her out that you actually like this and want to do it, after Kora, who basically does it to make her happy, and me, who noped out as soon as I could. You scare her.” Daisy sounds like she’s smiling. “It’s kind of cool.”

“Well, I certainly don’t mean to.” Jemma sighs. “I just want to be able to do this for however long I can. I feel... _right_ when I’m skating, you know?”

“Yeah, I totally get it.” The locker room door opens and Daisy says, “Look, I better go, but come find me when you feel like it, okay? Elena still has to skate her program so we’ve got a bit of time and I want to buy you fries or something.”

Jemma can’t help herself, she lets out a giggle. “Your mom will be upset if she finds out.”

“Yeah, well, she’ll get over it.”

She ends up staying in fifth place, just under Kora. Elena snatches the win from a tiny blonde who gives her the iciest look Jemma’s ever seen, and Bobbi keeps third place. The mood in the car on the way home is generally celebratory, and they’re clearly trying their best to include Jemma in that, but even with that (and a belly full of contraband fries, which Daisy sneaked her off to get as promised) Jemma can’t shake the heavy disappointment in her chest.

Her parents, while they’ve been distantly supportive of her throughout all this, don’t ask her how it went beyond a few cursory questions. This isn’t a shock - her mother’s trying to get tenured and her father’s company has him on a project that’s meant a lot of late nights. She texts Fitz to come over instead.

He does, of course. “I brought _The Key to Time_ , _Genesis of the Daleks, Remembrance of the Daleks_ and also a bit of Eccelston and Tennant if you’re feeling like the newer stuff,” he says, dropping his backpack full of DVDs on her bed. “Sorry you didn’t make it.”

“It’s alright,” she sighs. “At the very least, the Harvard advisor seems very impressed with my work. After all this, I certainly hope I’ve increased my changes.”

“It’s something, at least,” he agrees, plopping down on the bed. “Oh, and I brought Jaffa cakes. Thought that might help.”

“Thank you.” She takes one from him and shoves it into her mouth. “Let’s do _Genesis_ , if that’s alright.”

“Can’t go wrong with Four and Sarah Jane,” Fitz agrees, getting up to pop it into Jemma’s DVD player.

\---

Part of Jemma never wants to return to the rink - just concede her defeat and never show her face again. But unfortunately some of her stuff is still in one of the lockers, and no amount of embarrassment will allow her to abandon her favorite cardigan there. 

She decides to go in very late in the day on a school night, hoping maybe the rink will be nearly empty. And she’s _almost_ right, except as she’s sneaking out of the locker rooms, backpack stuffed full of clothes, she hears loud voices coming from Jiaying’s office. 

Jemma freezes. Then, after a moment, she starts to slink down the hall again. Unfortunately, the most direct path out will lead her right past Jiaying’s office, and whoever is yelling in there. She hopes maybe if she’s quick and quiet, it won’t be an issue. 

As she gets closer, she can hear that the voices are Jiaying and - Kora?

“-don’t have the talent, and we both know it,” Kora shouts.

“Perseverance is nine-tenths of mastering any sport.” Jiaying sounds exasperated. “You just need to work harder, Kora.”

“No, I don’t! Do you know what I need, Mom? Or even what I _want_?”

Jemma’s frozen to the spot, terrified of moving even a little, sure that it will draw attention to herself.

“Well, clearly you want to tell me. Go ahead, I’m listening.”

“I want to go to school like a normal person. Did you know I’m flunking calculus, Mom? It’s my senior year and I’m fucking flunking calculus! Because I have no time to study because I’m always _here_! And I also want to be able to actually do senior year stuff instead of being here every goddamn weekend. It’s going to suck ass, but you know what? I want to buy a stupid dress and go to homecoming. And I want to ask Piper. Do you know who Piper is? No, you don’t, because I can never bring her over because I always have some stupid skating shit to do! And I want you to actually be proud of me for stuff _I_ feel proud of, and not just because I’m your little clone who you can make into the champion you couldn’t be!”

Jiaying is very quiet for a moment. Jemma almost doesn’t breathe. “Alright,” Jiaying says finally, her voice thick with something Jemma can’t place. ”I can see we’ve overdone some things. Maybe we can start reworking-”

“No, Mom. No reworking anything. I’m out. I’ll be in the car.”

And before Jemma can move, Kora storms out of the office. She’s swiping at her eyes, and Jemma hopes that that will keep Kora from seeing her, but no such luck. “Did you hear all of that?” Kora asks, quieter. 

“I’m sorry,” Jemma says quickly, “I just-”

“Don’t be,” Kora says with a little laugh, shaking her head. “I’m kind of glad someone heard me telling my mom what I’ve wanted to tell her for years. God, the look on her face.” Then she glances over at Jemma. “Y’know, when I drop out, you’ll get the fourth spot. You’ll go to sectionals.”

Jemma’s brain hasn’t quite managed to process that yet. “I will?” she asks, eyes wide. 

“Yeah. Which is good, you actually deserve it.” Kora gives her a wobbly smile. “Come back tomorrow and tell my mom you want her to train you. She’s kind of a bitch, but she’s a good coach and she needs you as much as you need her.”

“Okay,” Jemma says, more than a little overwhelmed. She can’t help but return the smile.

The next morning, before school, Jemma is at the rink the second it opens. “Jiaying,” she says, standing in her office doorway. “Kora told me she’s quitting.”

“She is,” Jiaying says, matter-of-factly. She glances up at Jemma and raises an eyebrow.

“And I want you to be my coach for sectionals,” Jemma continues, doing her best to sound confident. 

“And why would I do that?” Jiaying doesn’t sound accusatory. She sounds...almost curious?

“Because you no longer have a skater, and I don’t have a coach. We’re perfect for each other.”

Jiaying smirks. “I’m not sure you have what it takes.”

“Well, Kora’s not competing anymore,” Jemma points out. “But I want this, Jiaying. I want it more than I’ve ever wanted anything. I got approved for the Harvard scholarship, but I’m willing to defer it for a year, that is how much I want this. You’ve seen me training. You said I have raw talent and you know I’m willing to work hard. I will work harder than any skater you have ever trained. And if I fail, well, I fail, but I’ll fail after having tried. I want to see how far I can go in this sport and I want you to help me find out. But if you won’t, I’ll find out on my own.”

Jiaying stares at her for a very long moment. Then, just as Jemma’s about to slink away and give up forever, she nods once and says, “We’ll start tomorrow, six AM. Be here and be ready to work.”

Jemma floats through the school day, which doesn’t escape her friends’ notice. “Well, something good happened to you,” Bobbi says when she enters homeroom with a giant smile on her face. “What’s up?” 

“Mom agreed to train you, huh?” Kora asks. There’s no trace of bitterness in her voice, just curiosity. 

“Yes,” Jemma says, bouncing in her seat just a little. “We start tomorrow.”

At lunch, Elena comes up and claps her on the shoulder. “So I hear you’re still in the competition,” she says, beaming. “May the best woman win.”

“Indeed,” Jemma says, feeling impossibly happy.

After school, she heads out to the pond near her house, thinking maybe it’ll be good to get a bit of practice in. To her shock, there’s a familiar zamboni out on the ice. 

“Hello!” she calls, waving to get Daisy’s attention. 

Daisy waves back and, after finishing the ice, drives off of it onto solid ground and turns off the zamboni. Then she grins down at Jemma. “Hey,” she says. “A little birdie told me you’re back out on the ice starting tomorrow.”

“Your mother?”

Daisy snorts. “No, Kora. But she and Mom are talking again after their huge fight yesterday, so that’s good. I think she actually shook Mom up a lot, but like, in a good way.”

“Well, good.” Jemma glances at the pond. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“I know, but I wanted to. You cool if I hang out here for a bit?”

Jemma ducks her head and smiles shyly. “Please. I have hot cocoa at home, if you’d like to warm up before you go home.”

“That sounds perfect.”

\---

The next month is the most grueling experience of Jemma’s life. But, somehow, it’s worth it.

She’s at the rink before school every morning, where Jiaying runs her through a program they work out together. Then after school she’s there for another hour, before she dashes home to finish her homework. She occasionally has time for a quick chat with Daisy or Fitz, but mostly she lives and breathes skating, even more than she already had been. 

Her parents take the news that she’s deferring the Harvard scholarship with some surprise, but less disapproval than she expected. “If you think that’s what’s best, dear,” her mother says with a little nod. “As you know, we’ve never been a sporty family, but we’re proud of you for working so hard on all of this,” her father says. Jemma hugs them both and notices that sometimes her father leaves a packet of biscuits outside her room, and her mother occasionally interrupts her frantic studying with a cup of her favorite tea. Neither of them have the time to watch her skate, but they’re trying to help, in their way.

Sectionals is on the second weekend of December, unfortunately right before finals, but Jemma’s honestly glad she’ll have it over with and have most of the week to study. (Monday’s only final is human biology, which she’s aces at anyway.) The competition doesn’t start until 2 PM, but the rink is over an hour away and Jiaying is worried about parking, so she herds Jemma, Kora and Daisy into the van around 10 AM. Jemma tries to sit next to Daisy, but Jiaying insists she take the front seat. “You need to stay focused,” she insists. “And _you_ , Daisy Louise, need to not distract my skater. Don’t roll your eyes at me.”

“Mom, I’m seventeen, not _seven,_ you don’t have to middle-name me,” Daisy gripes, and she texts Jemma _fries after the show?_

Jemma glances back while Jiaying is focused on merging into the next lane and nods, smiling. 

At the rink, Jiaying immediately ushers her into the skaters-only area. “Stay here,” she says sternly. “They open the warm-up area at around 1:30, but make sure you stretch before too. I’m going to make sure they have your music queued up properly.”

Jemma nods and chomps on the gum Kora brought for her. 

Bobbi and Elena come in soon enough, and they all share smiles that are at once nervous, excited, and slightly wary. “Break a leg, newbie,” Bobbi says, bumping their shoulders. 

“I think that’s for acting,” Jemma says with a laugh.

“I know we’re competitors,” Elena says, “but I’m glad we’re sort of friends too.” She claps Jemma on the back fondly. “Hey, maybe you guys can come see me at the Olympics, huh? I bet I can swing an invite for friends.”

Bobbi and Jemma both laugh. “Not if I’m the one doing the inviting, Rodriguez,” Bobbi says with a grin.

They mostly leave each other alone after that, but Jemma appreciates the way they’ve made room for her, after having an odd rapport with Kora all these years. She turns her focus to her program, her fondness for her friends fading to buzzy nerves. 

One by one, the skaters are called out to do their programs. Jemma hears each song they perform to, an odd mix of modern pop, 80s and 90s throwbacks, and a few classical songs (probably picked by traditionalists). Jemma’s chosen “God Help the Girl,” a bouncy pop track that works well with her love for jumps and spins. 

Then, finally, it’s her turn. 

She skates out onto the ice and, in the seconds while her name is announced and she waits for her music cue, she looks frantically around for Jiaying, Kora and Daisy. She doesn’t see them, but she _does_ spot Fitz, who’s made a truly ridiculous sign that says ALLONS-Y SIMMONS! in blue glittery letters with a terrible cartoon skate in one corner and a slightly better rendering of the TARDIS in the other. It’s so embarrassing, and it makes her smile. 

Her routine starts off perfectly. She glides through it as if she’s done it a hundred times before, because by this point she feels like she has, and she’s so focused on what comes next that she doesn’t realize she’s off-balance at the beginning of her triple salchow until it’s too late. 

She feels her ankle give way the second she lands, and she goes sprawling sideways. 

Somehow, her body realizes what’s going on as it’s happening, and she uses the momentum to sort of push up with her other ankle and get herself on her feet again quickly, trying to pass it off as nothing. The judges will count it against her, she knows, but she just keeps going, improvising a triple lutz later on and hoping that will help her score. 

By the time she’s done, the crowd is cheering so loudly she can almost feel it in her bones. Kora told her a few weeks ago that she’s become sort of the underdog favorite, since her appearance was so sudden and her story so dramatic and mysterious. She just hopes that goodwill will be enough to make up for her fall.

Jiaying is waiting for her after she emerges from the locker room, looking as stern as ever, but she says, “That was quick thinking out there. I couldn’t have recovered better myself.”

Daisy throws her arms around her and says “You were amazing out there!” Kora gives her a friendly whack on the arm and says, “Nice job not landing on your ass.”

Fitz shows up a little later, having gotten turned around and walked the wrong way around for ten minutes (apparently a security guard had to redirect him), but he’s grinning. “You did great!” he says. “Did you see my sign?”

“I did,” Jemma says with a laugh. “You hate glitter.”

“I figured it was appropriate,” Fitz says, gesturing to the glittery costume she’s wearing (another one of Jiaying’s, this one a blue ombre and decorated with sequined fish). “Mum and Gran made me work on a tarp in the yard, ‘cause they didn’t want it getting everywhere.”

“Well, thank you.” Jemma gives him a quick hug, which he even reciprocates a bit (he’s not a huggy person but he’ll put up with it on special occasions). 

“So,” Daisy says, “time for a snack?”

Jiaying raises an eyebrow. “And by that you mean fries, don’t you?”

“Mom,” Kora groans, “she just did a killer job, let her have some damn fries. I’m sure going to.”

“Fine, fine,” Jiaying sighs. “Just be back here for the results.”

The four of them head for the snack bar, Kora and Fitz walking faster (apparently Fitz has offered to tutor her in calculus for a “reasonable rate,” which she’s trying to haggle down). Jemma and Daisy hang back a little, walking close together. “So, if you qualify to go to nationals, you’ll be coming around the rink a lot, huh?” Daisy asks.

“Yes, I suppose I will,” Jemma says playfully. “I’m afraid I’ll be making quite a mess of your nice smooth ice.”

“You can mess up my ice anytime,” Daisy says with a big cheesy grin, and then, before Jemma can respond to that, she leans over and kisses her.

Jemma’s a little startled, but she almost immediately starts kissing back, and they just stand there kissing for a minute until they hear Kora calling, “Get a room, dorks!”

That makes them break apart, grinning and laughing, and Jemma takes Daisy’s hand and holds it all the way to the snack bar.


End file.
